The Sistine Chapel is the most famous church in Rome and perhaps even one of the most renowned spaces in the world for art, due to the presence of several famous frescoes by Michelangelo. The chapel is in the Apostolic Palace and can be visited by booking a ticket for the Vatican Museums.
For many visitors to the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel is the highlight of the museum visit, and this is evident in the museum itself. The closer you get to the Sistine Chapel, the busier it becomes. Inside the Sistine Chapel itself, it is often very crowded and noisy. As a result, photography has not been allowed in the chapel for several years. This rule was also introduced to protect the paintings from the many bright flashes of light from phones and cameras.
History of the Sistine Chapel
The Apostolic Palace is the residence of the Pope in Vatican City and is named after its founder, Pope Sixtus IV. The chapel was built in the 15th century by the architect Giovanni di Dolce, and after its completion, it was dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, with the first mass being celebrated on August 15, 1483.
After its completion, the chapel was decorated with numerous frescoes by some of the most famous artists of the High Renaissance, including Perugino, Botticelli, Ghirlandaio, and the most famous of all, the Italian painter and sculptor Michelangelo.
All the frescoes in the Sistine Chapel can be divided into three different periods: the period before Moses received the Ten Commandments, the period between Moses and Christ, and the period that followed. The most famous ceiling painting of the Sistine Chapel is “The Creation,” painted by Michelangelo and located in the centre of the ceiling. This painting depicts God giving life to Adam, and this section, especially the part where the fingers almost touch, can be found on many souvenirs in Rome.
Conclave of Cardinals
The Sistine Chapel is also world-famous because it is the space where cardinals engage in conversation when a new pope needs to be elected. When a new pope needs to be elected, the whole world watches the chimney of this room, from which black or white smoke emerges after each voting round twice a day, allowing the people present in St. Peter’s Square and the hundreds of television cameras to see if a new pope has been chosen or not. White smoke means a new pope has been elected, while black smoke means another voting round is needed.
The Sistine Chapel is the Pope’s private chapel and is also used for solemn ceremonies and daily choir services provided by the Sistine Chapel Choir.
Skip the Line at the Vatican Museums
Do you want to admire the Vatican Museums and the extraordinary Sistine Chapel in Vatican City but don’t want to risk waiting in the long queue at the ticket office and losing valuable time during your trip to Rome? Choose for the skip-the-line ticket, allowing you to pass the long queue at the ticket office and proceed directly to the ticket control.
During your visit to the Vatican Museums, you can admire thousands of artworks, many of which are of priceless value, coming from the papal collections. You can also marvel at the magnificent frescoes by Michelangelo displayed in the Sistine Chapel. On the ceiling and walls of this chamber, you’ll see remarkable paintings including The Last Judgment.
It’s best to reserve tickets for the Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel in advance because the availability of the number of people allowed to visit the museum is limited, and demand is high, especially during holiday periods. The queues at the museum entrance ticket office are often extremely long, and waiting times averaging one hour are more the rule than the exception. During peak seasons, this waiting time can even extend to two hours. By booking your tickets for the Vatican Museums in advance, you save a lot of time, time that you can better spend exploring Vatican City and Rome.
Ticket for Vatican Museums & Sistine Chapel
Skip-the-line tickets for the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel cost 31 euros for adults, children between the ages of 6 and 17 or students pay 20 euros. An audio tour is included when you book with Get Your Guide. Children under six years old and disabled individuals can enter for free. You can easily order your tickets online via the Getyourguide website. If you want to book tickets for today or tomorrow but everything is already full, you can also book a last-minute ticket for a small additional fee via this link.
Tickets can be booked by the websites of tiqets.com or by the GetYourGuide website. Payment can be made quickly and securely via iDeal, credit card, and PayPal, and after your booking, you will receive the tickets in your inbox within 24 hours.
When booking, you must specify a time slot for your museum visit. When visiting the Vatican Museums, your knees and shoulders must be covered, and low-cut and sleeveless tops as well as shorts are prohibited.
